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Union Leader named New England Newspaper of the Year

The New Hampshire Union Leader has been named “Newspaper of the Year” by the New England Newspaper & Press Association.

The Union Leader was judged in the large-newspaper category, competing against some of New England’s biggest dailies.

According to NENPA, the competition is “unlike any other in our industry because the winners are selected by the audience — jury panels of newspaper readers.”

Two editions submitted by competitors were compared by the judges. One issue had to be from the week of March 18 of this year, while the other could be of any date during the contest year, which ran from June 2012 to this past May. The Union Leader chose editions of Thursday, March 21, and Thursday, April 4.

Publisher Joseph W. McQuaid said the award belongs to “a very talented and committed staff of professional newsmen and women.”

“The key word there is ‘professional,’” McQuaid said. “In this disruptive age where anyone can write anything, it is very important that the public has access to credible content produced by a trusted source. In the Union Leader and Sunday News and UnionLeader.com, they know they have that.”

Managing Editor Amy J. Vellucci said, “It’s gratifying to be rewarded for the efforts made by our hard-working staff on a daily basis and perhaps even more gratifying that the accolades came from newspaper readers.”

The Union Leader is New Hampshire’s only statewide newspaper. It emphasizes a broad mix of state and local general news, business and government reporting, and sports.

The New England Newspaper & Press Association will present the Newspaper of the Year and other awards at its annual fall conference at the Crowne Plaza in Natick, Mass., on Oct. 10.